Off to Chilford Quilt Show in the morning. I have Variagated Machine Quilting Thread on my shopping list. Has anyone any particular recommendations - or un-recommendations!
Also if you are using non-variaged thread do you tend to use the same weight as you have for piecing, or is a slightly thicker one better? (I am going to be machine quilting, not hand.) Is machine quilting (will be a flowing rather than a tight stipple) very thread greedy - I am guessing at one spool for the top and one for the underneath which will be the same colour.
I also need some more quilting needles - has anyone any preference between Quilting and Jeans needles, and what size should I get. I must admit that needle sizes absolutely defeat/confuse me. I just know to avoid Universal.
Have a lovely day. I used to live just up the road from Chilford!! I met Dave in Linton Village College which you will probably go past >g<
Anyway: I love Aurifil variegated. I have a lot of YLI which is very good, has lovely colour collections, but it is a little 'chunky' for my little pieces (just fine for the large ones). I also love Madeira rayon for wallhangings (I think it might not be too hard-wearing for bed quilts and other things that have to be washed - though I have no evidence for saying that. There is another one which has some very unusual colour mixtures, as well as the more ordinary, and that is Alcazar, made by Anchor (green plastic spools). I bought a nice selection of Sulky rayons when I was in the US - beautiful colour combinations - subtle and bright.
As to needles, I like Jeans, because the long, sharp point seems to offer no resistance to the fabric - just goes through beautifully, even seams. I'm sure the 'sharps/quilting/microtex' are as good. I use 10 or 11 for piecing, but probably prefer 12 for quilting. (That's 70, 75 and 80 if you need that). . In message , Sally Swindells writes
Thanks Pat - I have printed it all out - twice actually - so that if I drop one piece of paper I still have a spare!
Now to round the Kitties up for bedtime. At least they are all inside in the warm tonight. Kiwi has taken to going on the roof (we are single storey) and insisting he can't get down (as he is more agile than Mia and she gets down quite easily I don't really believe him. I think its because he likes stepping into the large wicket shopping basket I have to hold up to the roof for him, and having his own personal lift (elevator) down and then being carried in the house in it!
Like Pat, Sally, I love Aurifil -- both the variegateds and the solids. Aurifil is available in the 50 wt. and heavier, but I generally use the
50wt for both for piecing and machine quilting. If you want your quilting to stand out more, though, a heavier weight would be fine. As for how much thread to estimate, it would depend on the size of the quilt and how much quilting you'll be doing. I'd buy an extra spool if you have any doubts at all. :)
Thanks Sandy. I searched the show for Aurifil but couldn't find any. I think Pat said they had it at Cotton Patch, but they didn't have a stall so will have to look on their site - or in their catalogue. I did find Madiera though, so got that for SisIL's Quilt as I want to do some this weekend. Bought a good supply of needles (the ones Pat recommended) - I always find shops have sold out of which ever size I need! Also bought some buttons shaped like little white doves to go on the back of the matching cushion - as she is a button collector thought I'd better put special buttons on, and the quillow has a bit of fabric with doves on as she is an avid bird watcher too.
Didn't actually buy much else - did get one of Lynne Edward's Drunkard's Paths templates, and promised her I would finish my sampler quilt soon. (some of the blocks came from her books). It will make me use the curved piecing foot I had for my birthday but is still in the packet. She had a worksheet on folded blocks which looked interesting too, so got one of those, but haven't really looked at it properly yet.
Also bought some paper piecing paper from Rio who I've ordered my EQ6 from. He said I was third on their waiting list, and that when he was in Houstan was told that they were in the process of making the discs. When I got home there was a message from the other supplier I had asked about EQ6 so must e-mail them tomorrow and let them down gently! I was impressed by Rio's very prompt service and good price.
Didn't buy any fabric - it was very busy and crowded and the aisles were narrow and I like a bit of peace when I'm concentrating - my brain just goes into a spin with all these other hands flying over the fabrics. The prices seemed fairly normal, and the few bits and pieces I had on my list I would rather get next week when I am having a shopping afternoon while DH goes to a meeting. Know what I want, who has it and that their price will be lower. I don't need it until after Christmas when I will be finished with Christmas gifts.
Sally Holman was there with her fantastic embellished quilts and had the first copy of her new book 'The Quilter's Directory of Embellishments'. It had only just dropped through her letter box, so there weren't any to buy, but it looked good. As everyone was having a look at it it will be worn out by the time she gets it home.
Oh that sounds like a fun day, Sally. Yes, Cotton Patch do have Aurifil. So glad you were able to get some things you wanted. Did you try any of their wine? or is it perhaps not available on days like that? (Chilford - where they have this show - is a vineyard, for those who have never heard of it!) . In message , Sally Swindells writes
It was cold and windy and the entrance to the Wine bit looked deserted. When we arrived we were too anxious to get inside - thank goodness for pre-booked tickets and quick entrance. When we came out we were too tired.
I was looking out for your college, but the Tom-Tom route thingy shouted 'Turn right' just as we entered the village(?) and we shot off through a new housing estate (Mrs. Tom-Tom knew a shortcut) so I don't think we had gone far enough. We came home through Cambridge and Bury St Edmunds which was half an hour quicker than the country lanes.
It sounds like you had every bit as much fun as I did in Houston, Sally! I was amazed when I met up with a French quilter I knew from another list and she said that the aisles were wide and not too crowded in Houston; we consider them pretty full and rather narrow, but I guess they're worse at the French shows.
One of the things I bought at the Houston show and which I'm rather pleased about is a pattern for a laptop bag. I'm tired of boring black, professional-looking bags, so I'm going to think about what sort of print I want to use for this!
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